Frenzy

He raised his gaze to look at Pearl. She seemed calm, standing there with her Glock still in her hand. The hand and gun were as steady as if they were sculptured stone.

“You never were one to wait in the car,” Qui

Pearl looked down at him. “Lucky you.”

A uniformed cop walked over and bent low, found the stray gun beneath the killer’s body, and slid the weapon ten feet away. He didn’t straighten up, but stayed still with his head bowed, listening to something the dying killer had to say. Then the killer turned his head toward Qui

Then, incredibly, the mouth smiled.

The uniformed cop sauntered over to Qui

“Good,” Qui

The cop smiled thinly. “I wouldn’t contradict you.”

Pearl laid her hand on Qui

“We do,” the cop assured her.

“He whispered something to you,” Qui

The cop nodded. “Told me to give you a message. Said I should tell you checkmate. Just that one word.”

Qui

“I think he’s gone,” the cop said.

Qui

“Checkmate,” the cop said again.

Qui

“Go tell him royal flush,” he said.

But the D.O.A. killer was dead, in a pool of his own blood, seduced by a woman.

82

Two days after the shoot-out at the Far Castle, Renz dropped by the Q&A office and informed Qui

Another imitation.

Qui

“Any word on where Winston Castle or Maria are?” he asked.

“Blown in the wind,” Renz said, “like the answers to a lot of questions. The Ohio family members—or whatever they are—know from nothing.”

“I have a feeling Castle and his wife—if Maria’s really his wife—will turn up again. There aren’t any warrants out for them.”

“There would be if I could think of some charges,” Renz said. Not meaning it. Why stir up this mess and make it politically radioactive again?

“What about the restaurant?” Qui

“The Far Castle is closed. Sign in the window says it’s temporary, for remodeling. Doesn’t say for how long.” Renz glanced around the office. He and Qui

“Physically, yeah. But she’s got a lot of mental baggage to rummage through.”

“Feds?”

“Minor wounds,” Qui

“Weaver’s out of the hospital already,” Renz said. “She’s a tough lady.”

“Pearl visited her there,” Qui

“Tough ladies,” Qui

“Poetic something,” Renz said. “Justice would have been if we could have let Pearl, Weaver, and Feds’s wife, Pe

“No,” Qui

This was the second time Pearl visited Nancy Weaver. They were alone in the room, which was on the fifth floor and let in too much traffic noise.

“It’s nice of you to come by,” Weaver said. She was resting on her back in bed, an IV tube snaking to the back of her right hand. What was visible of her body showed bruises that were every color of the spectrum

“We’re on the same floor,” Pearl said. “So it’s no big deal.”

Weaver didn’t nod. Didn’t move.

“It’s not like us to get along this well,” Pearl said, for a moment wondering what the hell she was doing there.

“I’m not hurt as bad as I look,” Weaver said. “I’ll be out of here soon.”

“Same for me,” Pearl said.

Weaver shook her head. “God, you almost died. You can’t just walk out of here after a few days.”

“We both almost died,” Pearl said.

“Occupational hazard.”

Pearl wondered if Weaver was as far along on the recuperative scale as she thought. Like she might disentangle herself from all those tubes, struggle out of bed, and stroll out of here.

“Are you two plotting something?” a woman’s voice asked.

Both women looked at a hefty nurse in a blue uniform. She was holding a clipboard and staring over it at Pearl and Weaver. A plastic tag pi

“Should you be out of your room?” the nurse asked Pearl, fixing her with a Qui

“Doctor said it was okay,” Pearl lied.

“I’d like for you to step out for a while,” Florence said.

Pearl nodded, moved to the bed, and squeezed Weaver’s hand. “You’re a good cop,” she said.

Weaver smiled up at her. “We both are.”

Pearl was in her room, fully dressed, when Florence knocked and then entered.

Florence’s eyes widened and became hard. “What do you think you’re doing out of your hospital gown?”

“Checking myself out,” Pearl said. “Going home.”

“You can’t do that.”

“I can,” Pearl said. “I’m a cop. I can do whatever I want as long as it’s legal.” She pushed past Florence and felt a heavy hand on her shoulder.

“If you impede me in any way,” Pearl said, “I’m going to handcuff you to the bed and leave you there.”

Pearl felt the hand on her shoulder become lighter. She walked out from beneath it and went out the door.

Florence followed her into the hall. “I know there’s something going on between you and Nancy Weaver. Some kind of competition. I could see it in the two of you. This isn’t the time or place for that kind of nonsense.”

“What kind of nonsense would you suggest?”

“Anything that won’t turn relatively minor injuries into something more serious.”

Pearl stopped and stood so she was facing the nurse, holding her ground. “You really can’t stop me, you know.”

“I know. But I should be able to. For your own good. Some of those wounds might become infected.”

“Doubt it,” Pearl said. “But if they do, I’ll come back. I promise.”

Florence watched her as she walked down the hall, toward the elevators.

Then the concerned nurse headed for Weaver’s room, praying that she wasn’t dressed in street clothes.

“Lord save them from themselves,” she murmured.

83

The week after D.O.A. died, Qui

The sudden noise surprised the hell out of Qui

He managed to remain upright, dug the tip of the cane into the floor, and swiveled the chair around to where he could reach the phone, answer it, and identify himself.